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Special Olympics sports officials ensure adherence to the rules and safe competition, and are necessary to ensure the integrity of the sport.

Becky Fischer of Special Olympics Pennsylvania (USA) and Susan Mitchell (right) were floor hockey officials at the 2005 Special Olympics World Winter Games. Fisher, a former Special Olympics athlete, became an official through the Special Olympics Officials Program for Athletes.

We encourage everyone officiating Special Olympics competitions to become certified in their sport and provide an opportunity for anyone interested, including Special Olympics athletes, to become a certified Special Olympics sport-specific official.

The Special Olympics Officials Training and Certification process consists of three parts.

Officials with a National Governing Body (NGB) officials' certification and/or an International Sport Federations (ISF) officials certification should participate in Part 1, which provides an introduction to Special Olympics, officiating Special Olympics events and any necessary rules and sport equipment modifications, and Part 3, which entails officiating 10 hours or five Special Olympics sport-specific competitions under the observance of an experienced Special Olympics official and/or competition staff member.

Those individuals with neither a NGB nor an ISF officials certification must also complete Part 2 of the process, which focuses on the competition venue, games management and the various officiating positions of the sport.

When participants in the training process have completed all the requirements, they must complete the Special Olympics Sports Training Certification form; have a local Program staff member sign off on the completion requirements; and send the completed form to the Program office

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The Start of the Solution

Young people from around the globe with and without intellectual disabilities are coming together at the SOGenUin Summit as part of the 2015 Special Olympics World Summer Games with one goal - to change the world.